Pump station's estimated cost increases

The projected costs for improvements to the Winnetka Avenue pump station have grown significantly, according to officials.

As part of Winnetka's $41 million stormwater program, the improvements to the pump station were originally estimated at about $750,000.

But the project is now expected to cost closer to $1 million, said Steve Saunders, Winnetka's public works director.

The projection increased when the Cook County Forest Preserve requested modifications to the plan, including fencing and landscaping around the improved pump station, Saunders said. The plans also just became more expensive once further refined, he said.

Saunders said it's not unusual for project cost estimates to fluctuate as the engineering becomes more refined, pointing to projects in northwest Winnetka that recently decreased by about $300,000.

The pump station is expected to be bid out in August, with construction beginning in the early winter. After the improvements, the station will be able to pump 60,000 gallons of water per minute, according to the village, instead of the current rate of 40,000 gallons per minute

In addition to improving the stormwater drainage in southwest Winnetka, the project is a necessary component of the planned $35 million Willow Road tunnel.

Once that tunnel is built some four years from now, it will direct stormwater east into Lake Michigan. But the first couple inches of rainfall, referred to as "the first flush," will continue to be directed into the Skokie River, village officials have said — an attempt to protect Lake Michigan from chemicals and other pollutants.

The improved Winnetka Avenue pump station is necessary for handling that volume of water, Saunders said.